AJK ex-PM Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi arrested in May 9 case
Former Azad Jammu and Kashmir prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s AJK President Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi was arrested from Samahni, police confirmed on Sunday.
According to officials, arrest warrants had been issued for Niazi in a case related to the riots of May 9, 2023.
The former AJP premier was taken into custody when he arrived in Samahni to deliver a speech at a PTI rally.
Mirpur Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Liaquat Chaudhry said that the PTI leader was detained under Section 16 of the MPO, 1960.
“The arrest was made on the orders of the deputy commissioner,” the DIG added.
Hundreds of cases were lodged after PTI supporters, protesting the party founder Imran Khan’s arrest, staged protests across the country in May 2023. They allegedly vandalised the military installations and state-owned buildings, besides attacking the Lahore corps commander’s residence.
The riots broke out after the arrest of Khan from the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in a graft case. Several PTI leaders and workers were released on bail after their arrests, while many remain behind bars.
The deposed prime minister, who was ousted from power via the opposition’s no-confidence motion in April 2022, has been behind bars since August 2023 as he was facing a slew of charges ranging from corruption to terrorism.
